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Oct. 1, 2018
NEW ORLEANS – Blue Bikes is building on the success of its September free ride promotion by lowering prices. Effective Oct. 1, the cost of Blue Bikes will drop to only 10 cents a minute, for a total of $6 an hour. Riders are charged only for the time they use, so a 20-minute Blue Bikes trip would be $2.
Riders are using Blue Bikes, sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, as a fast, green, convenient way to make short trips to the grocery, work, festivals, the park or wherever they may choose to ride, without the hassles of fighting traffic and finding parking.
“We hope that the lowered hourly price reflects the needs of the communities Blue Bikes serves,” said Laura Bryan, Director of the City of New Orleans Office of Transportation.
In September, Blue Bikes offered the #BlueDat promotion, which let New Orleanians ride for up to one hour each day at no charge, with no upfront cost. Locals made the most of #BlueDat, with nearly 30,000 trips taken in September.
The Downtown Development District (DDD) presented Blue Bikes with a Downtown NOLA Award in September, recognizing the city’s first bike-share program for affordable transportation that provides greater access to neighborhoods, worksites and destinations.
For the price change that starts Oct. 1, riders on existing pay-as-you-go plans do not need to do anything; the price change will be automatically adjusted for ride time billed to your account.
New riders can sign up for Blue Bikes at bluebikesnola.com or by downloading the Social Bicycles App from the Apple App Store or get it on Google Play. You will need to enter a valid credit card when signing up.
There is a one-time $5 sign-up fee for new pay-as-you-go riders, which is charged up front. After that, riders will only be billed 10 cents per minute for their Blue Bikes trips.
For those who wish to sign up for longer-term riding, Blue Bikes offers several options:
· A Monthly membership for $15 a month
· A University membership for $10 a month, open to students, faculty and staff of area colleges and universities
· A Reduced Fare membership for $20 a year, open to anyone who qualifies for Louisiana Purchase (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP)
For riders who qualify for the Reduced Fare membership, Blue Bikes has added a Pay Near Me option to pay in cash at participating locations. At this time, those locations are 7 Elevens, Family Dollar stores and CVS pharmacies. Visit www.bluebikesnola.com for more information on using Pay Near Me.
All Blue Bikes memberships gives you an hour of ride time per day, which can be used in increments or all at once. Additional ride time is charged at 10 cents per minute.
Remember to always lock Blue Bikes within the system area to avoid additional fees. Find an updated map of the system area at bluebikesnola.com or the Social Bicycles app.
For more information on Blue Bikes memberships, the system map or to sign up, visit bluebikesnola.com. Riders can also follow Blue Bikes on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
About Blue Bikes
Blue Bikes is a fast, convenient and affordable transportation system for residents and visitors to move around New Orleans. The bike share program is a partnership among the City of New Orleans, Social Bicycles and title sponsor Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana. Sign up to ride at bluebikesnola.com.
About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is committed to our mission to improve the health and lives of Louisianians. We invest both time and money in the communities we serve, supporting the health and wellbeing of Louisianians through more than 200 charitable organizations.
With our subsidiaries, HMO Louisiana and Southern National Life, we provide group and individual health insurance plans, life and disability insurance, group voluntary products and administrative services to one out of four Louisiana residents. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana also provides Medicare supplement and Medicare Advantage plans and is a partner in offering the Healthy Blue Medicaid Managed care plan. Louisiana is the only state where we operate, with offices in every major region to serve our customers.
Founded in New Orleans in 1934, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is a tax-paying non-profit health insurer. We are a private mutual company, owned by our policyholders, with an independent Louisiana Board of Directors and no shareholders. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.
